Victory Gardens: A Place for Homeless Veterans New complex will offer veterans a home and a hand up by Anne Stokes
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ccording to recent counts, there are 140 homeless veterans sleeping on the streets of San Joaquin County at any one time. Rising housing costs and falling rental vacancy rates make the problem worse. “There is a direct correlation between rates of homelessness and the costs of housing in “It’s really providing any given community,” says Currently under construction, Victory a broad group of Adam Cheshire, program Gardens is the largest permanent supportive housing project in San administrator for Homeless services for an individual Joaquin County’s history. Slated to Initiatives in San Joaquin open in Fall 2022, it will offer 49 units and wrapping that around a of affordable housing for veterans and County. “Because housing their families. prices aren’t going down, person so that they’re getting COURTESY OF ADAM CHESHIRE they’re going up, we expect all the supports they need at that homelessness is going credits, San Joaquin County every step.” to continue to be a rising and the Housing Authority of problem until that problem Adam Cheshire the County of San Joaquin is is solved. It’s a difficult Program administrator for Homeless currently constructing the largest problem to solve when the Initiatives in San Joaquin County permanent supportive housing solution is to create more units.” project in the county’s history: Victory While many veterans qualify Gardens. for help through the U.S. Department Built on 4.7 acres in French Camp, the $30 of Housing and Urban Development and million complex will offer 49 units in a complex located Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) near the new VA clinic currently under construction. rental voucher program, the tight competition for housing HUD VASH vouchers will be committed to each of those creates additional barriers for veterans who are already units, creating affordable housing dedicated solely struggling. to veterans and their families. Officials hope to start “We’ve got plenty of homeless veterans in the county housing veterans by Fall 2022. who would qualify for VASH and they simply can’t use In addition to providing a roof over their heads, that rental assistance to get a place because landlords Victory Gardens will also connect veterans with a wealth aren’t willing to rent to them,” Cheshire says. “Rental of supports to help them get back on their feet, including assistance relies upon landlords and the rental market case management and on-site social services. to rent to folks who are using a voucher and they’re “It’s really providing a broad group of services for refusing to do it because it’s too much of a risk. … How an individual and wrapping that around a person, so do you solve that problem? One way is to control the real that they’re getting all the supports they need at every estate.” step,” Cheshire says. “It’s not something that any one Controlling the real estate is just what San Joaquin organization is ever expected to provide; it becomes a County and several state and federal agencies have team effort to provide wraparound services.” joined together to do. With funding from the State of California’s Veterans Housing and Homeless Prevention (VHHP) program, the California Department of Housing and Community Development, CalVet, and federal tax
Help with housing » To qualify for housing at Victory Gardens, veterans must be eligible for rental assistance through HUD-VASH vouchers. Veterans must: · Be eligible for VA health care benefits. · Have not received a dishonorable discharge. · Be experiencing homelessness. · Be able to complete daily living activities and be able to live independently in the community with the help of case management and supportive services. » For veterans in need of housing help, but not struggling with homelessness, the VA offers other forms of housing assistance, including: · VA-backed home loans. · Housing assistance grants. » To see if you qualify or for help applying for HUD-VASH and other housing benefits, reach out to the San Joaquin County Veterans Service Office by phone at 209-468-2916 or online at www.sjgov.org/department/hcs/vet.
San Joaquin County Veterans Service Office www.sjgov.org/veterans/ 3
